The Girl Who Doesn't Smile (Hiatus)
by CompletelyAnonymousxd
Summary: Image is a powerful thing. A Prince who seeks to regain his honour by capturing the Avatar and the favour of his father. The daughter of a governor who is expected to act like the perfect daughter in the eyes of the public. See their own journeys and struggles as they are separated and reunited, but they don't know if their masks can be taken off. Mostly Canon.


_Thunk._

A throwing knife had flown through the air, pierced through the paper cleanly and embedded itself in the target, all in the blink of an eye. The thrower, a good 10 feet away, calmly walked up to it. She took down the spare parchment, revealing numerous identical cuts onto the wooden board, and scrutinised it. Her eyes narrowed and she made a disapproving noise, her face scrunched up in disgust. She was off-target by half an inch.

Suddenly, she heard the sound of footsteps. A lot of them, all at once. She looked out of her window of her room. A large group of people were walking past, down the road, towards - well, wherever they were going, she didn't care.

She decided to take a break and wait for the crowd to walk past before continuing, that is, until a servant knocked on the door.

"What?" She asked, feeling slightly annoyed at the interruption.

"Miss Mai, Princess Azula has ordered me to give you this scroll."

 _Oh great, what is it now?_ She took it from his bowing posture and waved him off. Unfurling it, half-expecting it to be some dull request relating to academics, her eyes widened. With no hesitation, she snatched up her throwing knife, sheathed it and exited the house as quickly as she could. She skipped steps down the staircase, leapt over furniture. If her mother was home, she would probably have faced a week's worth of punishment. But she didn't care, even as she left the gate ajar while taking off towards the Agni Kai Arena.

 _Oh Zuko, what have you done?_

As Zuko was led to the arena, his expression hardened. His fists clenched, and he saw red. He knew he had made a mistake, but how dare General Bujing suggest sacrificing an entire battalion of young soldiers? It was unthinkable.

He stepped into the arena, feeling the hot sand under him. Taking off his shirt and draping the traditional cloth over his back, he waited.

From the corner of his eye, he saw a crowd grow larger and larger, taking their seats on the stone benches that surrounded the arena. How had so many people been made known of this duel? Had they come to see him fight a general? He suppressed a gulp. His hands shook slightly.

He was no master firebender like Azula was, mastering only about half of the forms. He could only hope that Bujing was just as bad, if not worse.

He shut his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to recall his past lessons with his master Kunyo. When he opened them again, he saw his sister sitting at the front row seats, a malicious grin plastered over her face, heightening his anger further. Clearly she wanted to see him humiliated.

Now, he could only hear her voice taunting him.

And it was when he saw the figure a few seats away from her that he froze.

General Bujing grinned from ear to ear as he watched him with leisurely crossed arms. He wasn't the person he was duelling. So who was?

He turned around, the cloth falling to the sand, and he saw his opponent. His eyes widened.

His own father, Fire Lord Zuko, stared at him with eyes that seemed to burn with a dark, unloving fury. All of Zuko's courage melted away in an instant. Like a cat crocodile prowling towards its prey, he walked closer to him, exuding an aura of intimidation that silenced the tiniest murmur from the onlookers.

"Please, Father. I only had the best interests of the Fire Nation at heart. I'm sorry I spoke out of turn!" Zuko pleaded. Ozai did not slow down.

"You will fight for your honour," Ozai hissed.

Zuko dropped to his knees and bowed deeply, his forehead touching the ground. "I meant you no disrespect. I - I am your loyal son!" He looked at the imposing figure that blocked the sunset behind him. His shadow engulfed him in darkness. Tears began to flow down his cheeks.

"Rise and fight, Prince Zuko!" Ozai roared. He was a few steps away now.

Zuko bowed his head, his forehead kissing the ground once again. "I won't fight you."

Ozai grabbed his head like it was a doll with his left hand and pulled it so that they were face to face. "You will learn respect," he spat, "and suffering -" He covered Zuko's left eye with his right hand.

"Will be-" Through the blackness that Ozai's hand cast upon his left eye, Zuko saw sparks begin to ignite. _No, he - he can't. He wouldn't._

"Your teacher." A palm of fire seared Zuko's flesh. His face erupted into fiery agony as blinding colours was the last thing he saw with that eye. He screamed his voice raw, until Ozai removed his hands, allowing Zuko to collapse to the ground, weeping.

"For your insolence in my presence, for disrespecting senior authority of the Generals and myself, I, Fire Lord Ozai, hereby banish you, _Crown Prince Zuko_." He spoke his title with venom, "From the Fire Nation indefinitely, effective from sunrise tomorrow." His voice was magnified, decreeing it to the audience that, with the exception of a few, looked on in barely-concealed horror.

"Your dishonour will only be restored, and your banishment lifted, should you find and bring back the Avatar. Now, get out of my sight." He spat, before turning his back on his son.

Attendants rushed from the sidelines to bring the downed Prince to the infirmary, the latter trembling as he tried to move his limbs. The crowd dispersed, murmuring intensely. Some gave the Prince looks of pity; others, contempt.

But one in particular was still seated, seemingly impassive, until the majority of the crowd had left, that tears began to flow down her cheeks. Mai got up and followed the doctors. She wasn't sure what she was doing. Her parents would expect her to be home soon, but she was still in shock.

He was being carried on a stretcher, supported by four nurses. The head doctor and, to no one's surprise, Iroh trailed him. They laid him out on a table when they reached the infirmary. "Give him a sedative." The head doctor instructed. Another took a spoonful of a pale mixture from a bottle and gently fed it to Zuko. Mai saw Zuko look at her for a brief second. He lips moved, saying something she couldn't make out, before lapsing into merciful unconsciousness. It was then that Iroh seemed to notice her presence, looking behind him, his expression sorrowful. At his gesture, the two made their way out of the infirmary.

"Would you like to go home and rest? This must have been a frightening ordeal to witness," Iroh gently spoke.

She drew a shaky breath. "I - I want to stay."

He gave a sad smile. "I understand your concern, but Prince Zuko will be resting for the next few hours. Your parents must be expecting your return, no?"

"Y-Yes." She cleared her throat. She did not want him to see her like this.

"Then you should go. I will keep you informed of his state."

She stood up, trembling. "Thank you." She bowed, then turned to leave, walking at a fast pace. By the time she reached home, her mother was waiting for her by the doorway.

"I see you went to watch the Agni Kai." She said, her tone showing concern.

"Yes." Mai replied.

"Look, Mai, I know you care about Zuko, but…" Michi seemed unsure on how to sugarcoat what she had to say next.

"But what?" Mai demanded.

"You cannot be in his presence anymore." Her father appeared, climbing down the stairs. His tone was as concrete as the walls of Ba Sing Se.

Mai thought her heart was already pierced when she heard Zuko's tortured cry, but her father's words seemed to add another throwing knife.

"What do you - Why? How?" She spluttered.

"His honour has been tarnished. He is banished from his homeland. As far as our image is concerned, interacting with him will only anger Fire Lord Ozai, and that is the last thing I want hanging over our family name."

"He was just burnt by his own father!" She couldn't stop the outburst. "And you want to -"

"Mai!" Ukano raised his voice as a warning, stopping her midway. He took a quick glance out the door to see if there was anyone listening, before facing her again. Her mother hurriedly shut the door.

"You must understand, we are already in good standing with the Fire Lord. If all goes well, I may get posted to one of the conquered Earth kingdoms very soon. I cannot have that going up in flames because you were seen talking to the Crown Prince."

Mai knew that. She had heard her father rabble over and over about his potential promotion, and she could not care less. But as much as she wanted to argue, she couldn't.

"Do I have your word?" Her father asked. It sounded mechanically by now. Whenever he wanted something from her, trading privileges for her to act like the perfect daughter, he said that. She hated it.

"Yes." She said poisonously, before stomping up the stairs. She didn't care that she was going to be punished for that, alongside arguing and coming home late. In fact, she found it hard to care about the world anymore.

Flopping down on her bed, she wiped away her tears as she drifted into sleep, her thoughts occupied by the Crown Prince which awoke at midnight, to the relief of Iroh, who was resting on a nearby chair.

"Zuko!" Iroh sprang forward and held his hand tenderly. "It is good to see you finally awake."

"Uncle?" Zuko rasped, his throat dry and painful. "What - where am I?" Through his blurry vision, he saw a blanket draped over his half-naked form, and he could not see anything with his left eye.

"The infirmary," He replied.

"But - what -" He gasped in pain, flinching as he touched his left eye, noting the eye-patch of cotton, before the reality of the situation and the prior events came rushing to him. "Agni, I - I'm banished, aren't I?" He struggled to get up, Iroh supporting his back as he did so.

"I'm afraid so, Prince Zuko."

"I don't even have that title anymore, do I?" Zuko said bitterly. "I'm nothing more than an exile now."

"Your ancestry is not dictated by titles and word of mouth, Prince Zuko. Like it or not, the blood of the Royal Family runs in you. To me, you are and will always be the Crown Prince."

The encouraging words seemed to do little to lift his spirits. "What will I do, Uncle? I have to leave my home...by when?"

"Sunrise, today."

"Oh, spirits…" He buried his face in his hands, before he yelped in pain as he withdrew his left hand. It would take some time getting used to his new scar. _Not just physically,_ Iroh thought, _but emotionally as well._

"Do not worry, Prince Zuko. Your father was lenient enough to provide a ship, albeit not a large one, and I myself have assembled a crew, for your search. They will load it with the necessary supplies and food and set off at sunrise, if all goes well. For now, you may rest some more, until we have to leave."

"We?" Zuko asked. Iroh nodded. "I will accompany you, if it is all right with you. There is nothing much for me to do here, anyway."

Zuko looked at a loss for words. Finally he swallowed. "Thank you, Uncle." Iroh nodded, giving a warm smile. Then Zuko pulled the blanket over him and shut his eyes, while Iroh settled back onto his chair and slept as well.

The Crown Prince of the Fire Nation and the Dragon Of The West, spending their last day in the glorious Fire Nation sleeping at an infirmary, on a stone cold metal table and a wooden chair.

Nothing would ever be the same for them.

* * *

 **A/N: Hi, this is going to be mostly following the plot of ATLA but majority will be the POV of Mai and Zuko. I may deviate somewhere down the line but I haven't planned that far yet. Feedback is appreciated.**


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